Bright, fragrant and sun-filled vegetables delight us throughout the summer and fall. Is it really necessary to be content with rather tasteless products that fill supermarkets in winter? Not at all. There are several ways by which you can save bell pepper for the winter. And each of them has its own merits. Using simple tips, you can surprise your guests with a bright vitamin salad with fresh vegetables in February, or diversify your usual soups and main courses with a cocktail of colorful frozen pepper pieces.
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Read also: If there is cabbage, the table is not empty. Or harvesting pickled cabbage for the winter (13 delicious recipes)
How to choose peppers for long-term storage
Before you go to the market or your own vegetable garden, you need to decide on the harvesting method.
There are two stages of ripeness of bell pepper. This:
- Botanical (biological) ripeness - the fruits are evenly colored in a characteristic color, the size of the fruit corresponds to the variety. Such raw materials must be used for freezing, drying, canning. These fruits keep well in the refrigerator. They are able to retain their properties for 1.5 months.
- Fruits that are in the stage of technical ripeness cannot boast of size or bright color. You can recognize a pepper suitable for long-term fresh storage by lightly pressing it. A slight crunch indicates that the vegetable is unripe and will easily survive several months, gradually reaching the required condition. Do not freeze, do not dry, do not preserve such vegetables.
Fruits in the stage of biological maturity
If any varieties of bell peppers are suitable for drying and freezing, then the following are best suited for fresh storage:
- Martin
- Fugitive
- black cardinal
- Novogoshary
- Aristotle ex 3 p F1
- Red Baron F1
Vitamin Harvest
Vegetables without the slightest defect (cracks, rot, dents) are cut from the bush very carefully and always along with the stem. The fragile fruit is easily damaged, and it will be unsuitable for long-term fresh storage.
Read also: Harvesting Mushrooms for the winter - 15 delicious recipes: dried, pickled in jars, salted and other variations for every taste Fresh pepper storage
Before harvesting fresh vitamin fruits for the future, it is worth deciding on a room for long-term storage of vegetables. For these purposes, a cellar, basement or glazed balcony is suitable. The main thing is that the humidity is within the range of up to 80-90%, and the air temperature does not fall below 0 C.
Storage containers, such as wooden crates, must be dry and free of mold. Before laying vegetables, it is enough to withstand the boxes for several days in the sun.The shelf life of fresh pepper depends on the observance of the optimal temperature and humidity in the room, as well as the thoroughness of the selection of vegetables for the winter (only fruits that are at the stage of technological ripeness).
If all conditions are met, fresh bell peppers will be able to appear on your table throughout the winter.
Popular ways to harvest fresh fruits for the winter
It is desirable that the fruits do not touch each other. This will keep the vegetables from spoiling for as long as possible. And if one pepper has started to rot, you can simply remove it.
For this, individual packaging made of polyethylene with holes for air ventilation is suitable.. The method is convenient in that it simplifies the process of regular inspection of vegetables for integrity and the absence of signs of spoilage.
Harvesting vegetables for the winter
Paper bags have proven themselves well when storing bell peppers. They allow the fruits to "breathe" and significantly increase the period of freshness of the fruits. Packages can be replaced with plain paper, in which peppers are wrapped very carefully.
River sand will also help keep the bell pepper fresh for a long time. The sand is pre-calcined, the boxes are dried and the bottom is covered with newspapers. Peeled from visible contamination, the fruits are placed in a container and covered with sand.
Read also: Cooking beets for the winter - 17 wonderful recipes: very tasty and healthy
The best ways to freeze sweet peppers
Increasingly, housewives prefer frozen vegetables, which, unlike conservation, retain all the vitamins and bright taste properties. Pepper is no exception. It can be frozen whole, prepared, pre-cut, into small cubes or straws.
For owners of freezers of impressive size, the method of harvesting stuffed peppers is suitable, and fans of vegetable salads and sauces will appreciate freezing baked vegetables with a rich aroma and original taste.
Preparation of raw materials for freezing
Preparing Peppers for Freezing
For a blank that will help diversify the menu until the next season, biologically ripe peppers are selected without damage and signs of decay. If the vegetables are chopped, you can use not the most beautiful specimens, simply cutting out the unaesthetic parts.
- vegetables are thoroughly washed under running water;
- a core is cut with a sharp knife;
- veins and seeds are removed (if this is not done, then the dish, which will include the workpiece, may be bitter);
- peppers are washed again with running water and dried with a paper towel (the better the moisture is removed from the surface of the vegetables, the more crumbly the freezing will turn out).
Whole frozen pepper
Fans of stuffed peppers are often faced with the fact that they can enjoy the taste of their favorite dish only in season. You can correct the situation by freezing the whole fruits, peeled from seeds and veins.. There are several ways to do this:
Frozen blanks
- Peppers are placed one on one, like glasses. The resulting columns are placed in the freezer. Before cooking, they are stuffed without prior defrosting and cooked as usual.
- You can minimize the space occupied in the freezer by first lowering the peeled fruits for 1 minute in boiling water. This will soften the peppers and prevent them from cracking during the freezing process.
- Some housewives freeze peppers already filled with minced meat. The blanks are laid out on a flat surface, trying so that the peppers do not touch each other, and put into the freezer. A day later, they are filled with plastic bags. This method allows you to cook a delicious dinner in a matter of minutes. The frozen semi-finished product is poured with sauce and cooked on the stove or in the oven for about 15-20 minutes.
stuffed peppers
Chopped frozen pepper
Bulgarian pepper, frozen in pieces, perfectly complements soups, main dishes and salads. For harvesting, cut the fruits into small cubes or straws and freeze in bags or plastic containers.
Ready to freeze
Before heat treatment, such peppers are not thawed.
Shredded for freezing
Bulgarian pepper frozen after grinding in a meat grinder or blender will enrich the taste of sauces and seasonings. You can freeze vitamin raw materials in small plastic cups or ice molds. Red peppers are best suited for this harvesting method.
Its taste, color and aroma goes well with tomatoes, green basil, other vegetables and herbs. This allows you to freeze almost ready-to-eat sauce. Such a preparation will be able to preserve all the vitamin and taste qualities until the new harvest.
Baked vegetables preparation
This blank will delight you with new tastes and gastronomic emotions. Ripe and intact peppers are selected for cooking (preferably thick-skinned). The fruits are thoroughly washed under running water without removing the stalk, dried with a napkin and spread on a baking sheet greased with vegetable oil.
Peppers are placed in an oven preheated to 200 0C for 35-40 minutes.
Vegetables should be browned, covered with a fragile and almost black crust. After taking them out of the oven, you must immediately place them in any thick-walled pan and cover the dishes with a lid. After 15 minutes, the peppers are peeled, holding the stem, after which all the insides are easily removed.
baked beauties
It is advisable to save the juice that accumulates inside the baked vegetables by pouring it into a suitable dish.. Prepared peppers are tightly packed in a container, poured with the resulting juice and sent for storage in the freezer. Such a preparation is perfect for winter vegetable salads, it will saturate soup dressing with new tastes.
Baked peppers with cheese
Read also: Cooking jelly at home: 20 delicious fruit recipes and blanks for the winter Drying peppers for the winter
Drying vegetables for the winter
Dried bell peppers are fragrant and filled with vitamins in summer. There are several ways to prepare an original seasoning for various dishes. For example, in the oven, electric dryer or outdoors.
Whatever drying method you choose, peppers must be properly prepared by thoroughly washing, peeling and wiping dry. It is best to use fleshy, ripe and brightly colored fruits for drying.
Oven dried peppers
When preparing a fragrant seasoning from vegetables that are bright and filled with vitamins and microelements necessary for health, the following scheme should be followed:
- divide each pepper into four parts and cut into thin strips;
- preheat the oven to 400 C-500 C;
- line a baking sheet with parchment paper;
- spread pepper on a sheet, trying to leave a small distance between the strips;
- place the sheet in the oven and leave the cabinet door slightly ajar;
- the vegetable mass should be periodically stirred with a spatula;
- after 2 hours, turn off the oven without closing the door;
- the next day, the drying process should be resumed (heat the oven, periodically stir the pepper mass for several hours).
You can check the readiness of the product for long-term storage by breaking a slice of vegetable in your hand. If it bends, returns to its original position when pressed, then it is necessary to dry the product in the oven.
After drying
Ordinary water will help restore the dried billet to the state of a fresh vegetable. The proportions are as follows: half a glass of water is taken per glass of dry pepper. By filling the vegetable mass with liquid for several hours, you will get a delicious bell pepper that can be used as food, as well as fresh.
Drying in an electric dryer
Peppers, previously washed under running water and peeled from the core, are cut either into cubes - 2x2 cm, or into thin rings 0.5 cm thick. It is advisable to blanch the vegetables in saline solution (1%) for 2 minutes, cool in cold water and give moisture drain. After that, the raw materials are laid out on pallets of the dryer.
The main advantage of this method is the ability to forget about preparing the workpiece for a long 8-12 hours. During this time, the vegetables will acquire a characteristic crunchiness, without losing either the taste properties or the delicate aroma inherent in them. Some devices dry vegetables in 8 hours, others may take longer to achieve the effect necessary for long-term storage.
Dryer for vegetables
Vegetables dried using an electric dryer can be stored in pieces, or you can grind in a blender to a seasoning state. The finished product is heated in an oven and placed in glass jars, the lids of which are pieces of linen. Vegetable seasoning retains its taste for about 2 years, can be used to enrich soups, main courses and sauces.
The sun and air are assistants in harvesting pepper for the winter
Some housewives prefer not to use an oven and an electric dryer for drying vegetables, opting for natural drying processes. To do this, it is necessary to prepare a well-ventilated room that can reliably protect the bell pepper from excess moisture and direct sunlight. It can be a covered porch in the country, a canopy in the backyard, and even a balcony in an apartment building.
Preparatory process
Peppers cut into small strips are laid out in a thin layer on the grates and covered with a layer of ordinary gauze. The workpiece is taken out into the air, and the temperature regime does not play a special role. It’s just that on sunny and fine days, vegetables will acquire the crispy texture necessary for long-term storage in 3-4 days, and cloudy weather will force the pallets to be kept in the air for about a week.
If it rains, pepper must be brought indoors to avoid product spoilage. Periodically stir the vegetable pieces and check for readiness. Naturally dried vegetables retain a maximum of nutrients and have a bright aroma, indispensable in the preparation of first and main courses.
Oven-dried bell pepper
An original appetizer can be prepared from oven-dried bell peppers. The blank will decorate any holiday table, will be an excellent addition to the usual menu. To prepare a bright dish in every sense, you will need the following simple and affordable ingredients:
- fleshy, ripe and aromatic Bulgarian
- pepper - 3 kg
- garlic - 15 cloves
- a mixture of your favorite spices (basil and coriander are best combined with pepper) - 7-8 tsp
- garlic powder - 2 tsp
- salt - 2 tsp
- sugar - 4 tbsp
- vegetable oil
Peppers should be cleaned of seeds and partitions, blanched for 1-2 minutes in boiling water and lowered into a container filled with cold water. This will allow you to easily remove the skin from vegetables. The peeling process is not required.If the presence of the skin in the dish does not cause discomfort, this stage (blanching and subsequent cleaning) can be omitted.
The baking sheet is covered with baking paper, on which peppers cut into quarters are evenly laid. Vegetables are sprinkled with salt, sugar and seasoning, sent to an oven preheated to 100 C. Peppers will be cooked for about 2-3 hours (depending on the capabilities of the oven and the meatiness of the peppers). You can check the degree of readiness by piercing the vegetables with a toothpick. If they are soft, then the drying process can be completed.
Appetizing even in appearance
While the main product is being prepared, it is necessary to sterilize small jars. Hot pepper is placed in a container, interspersed with chopped garlic (about 4 cloves go to a half-liter jar). A completely filled jar is poured with hot, but not boiling, oil, rolled up, turned over and wrapped until it cools completely.
Such conservation can be stored under any temperature conditions, including in an ordinary pantry in a standard city apartment.
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Salads with sweet peppers for the winter
No matter how useful properties frozen or fresh peppers have, you can’t do without preservation saturated with bright flavors, which includes a popular vegetable. Bright salads will decorate the festive table, will be a wonderful side dish for meat. When choosing peppers for preservation, preference should be given to thick-skinned varieties that have reached biological maturity.
Winter preparation
Sauerkraut with bell pepper for the winter
Sauerkraut - a storehouse of vitamins and microelements, which our body so badly needs in the cold season. Bulgarian pepper added to the preparation will help to make the appetizer even more interesting and healthier. You will need the following ingredients:
- white cabbage - 2 heads (large)
- sweet pepper (preferably red) - 10 pcs.
- carrots - 10 pcs.
- horseradish - 2 sheets
- dill - a few sprigs
- bay leaf - 6 pcs.
- salt - 6 tbsp.
- black pepper - 8 peas
Another delicious dish
Wash the vegetables, finely chop the cabbage, cut the pepper into strips, grate the carrots. Spread in a jar in layers: cabbage mixed with salt, pepper, bay leaf and horseradish, carrots, peppers. Each layer should be compacted, put oppression and leave the jars warm for 5 days, piercing the cabbage daily to remove accumulated gases.
As soon as the fermentation process is completed, the jar is tightly closed with a lid and sent for storage in a cellar or refrigerator.
Lecho from bell pepper for the winter
There are many recipes for Hungarian bell pepper dishes. Each hostess prepares an appetizer in her own way, adding additional ingredients or, for example, replacing sugar for tomato sauce with honey. But before you start experimenting, you can master one of the simplest and most delicious cooking options for lecho, for which you will need the following products:
- peeled from seeds and partitions sweet pepper - 4 kg;
- tomatoes - 4 kg;
- vegetable oil - 200 ml;
- sugar - 1 cup;
- table vinegar (9%) - 6 tablespoons;
- salt - 2 tbsp.
Lecho
Cut the main salad ingredient into large cubes or strips. Cut the tomatoes into 4 parts, grind in a meat grinder or puree in a blender (you can first remove the skin from them, first dropping them into boiling water for a minute, and then into cold water). Pour the tomato into an enamel pan, add butter, sugar and salt, boil.
Put sweet peppers into the boiled sauce and boil for half an hour, stirring occasionally. At the end of cooking, pour in the vinegar, mix again and remove from heat.
Arrange the lecho in pre-sterilized jars, roll up with sterile lids. Preservation should be turned upside down and wrapped until completely cool. An appetizer prepared according to this recipe can be stored in a cool place without loss of taste properties for 2 years.
Finished workpiece
Salad "Manzho" from Bulgarian pepper for the winter
In Bulgaria, they not only grow delicious vegetables, but also prepare excellent winter snacks from them. For example, Manjo salad, which contains all the colors and aromas of autumn. To create a culinary masterpiece, you will need the following ingredients:
- sweet pepper - 1 kg
- tomatoes (preferably cream) - 1.5 kg
- eggplant - 1 kg
- hot pepper - 1 pc.
- onion - 600 g
- carrots - 200 g
- garlic - 1 head
- salt - 60 g
- sugar - 75 g
- vinegar - 1/4 cup
- sunflower oil - 1/2 cup
- black peppercorns - to taste
Wash and clean vegetables. Cut the pepper into strips, eggplants into slices, onions into half rings, grind the tomatoes in a blender, carefully chop the carrots, garlic and hot peppers using a food processor, a sharp knife or a grater.
Send the vegetable mixture to the pan, mix and put on fire. Salt after 20 minutes, add all other ingredients. Bring to a boil again and arrange in jars (previously sterilized), roll up, turn over, insulate and leave to cool.
Manjo
Read also: Lemon: description, care, growing from the stone at home, recipes for vitamin juice and lemonade (Photo & Video) + Reviews Salting bell pepper for the winter
Owners of cellars and basements will love the recipes for pickling bell peppers. The methods are simple and affordable, and the vegetables are not only healthy, but also tasty. For example, you can cook Bulgarian pepper for the winter.
Good selection of fresh vegetables
For this recipe, you need to prepare 10 kg of green sweet pepper, 100 grams of greens (cherry leaves, celery, parsley), 50 g of parsley roots, horseradish and celery, 5 g of coriander (seeds). For filling you will need the following ingredients: 700 g of salt and 700 g of vinegar per 9 liters of water.
Peppers should be thoroughly washed and pricked with a fork in several places in the base area. Place the vegetables as tightly as possible in sterile jars, the bottom of which is covered with part of the seasonings (herbs and chopped roots). The rest of the greens and roots are laid on top of the peppers laid in the container, the cooled filling is added, a small wooden circle is placed and oppression is put.
After 10 days at room temperature, the pepper will be ready. After that, the jars are closed with plastic lids and placed in a cool place. It is worth checking banks periodically. If there is not enough liquid and it stops covering the vegetables, you need to add vegetable oil or brine (for 1 liter of water - 20 ml of vinegar and 30 g of salt).
Read also: Growing seedlings at home: tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, eggplants, cabbage, strawberries and even petunias. All the subtleties of this issue Is sweet pepper shown to everyone?
Bulgarian pepper strengthens the immune system, reduces the risk of developing cancer, has a positive effect on the entire cardiovascular system, and thins the blood. A bright vegetable normalizes the digestive tract, improves appetite, memory and vision. Nutritionists recommend that sweet peppers be included in the menu of people suffering from diabetes, diseases of the skeletal system.
Sweet peppers are among the low-calorie vegetables. 100 g of fresh product contains only 25 kcal. This allows you not to limit its use to people who are obese and are actively struggling with extra centimeters at the waist.
finished product
The blanks are made, but is it worth it to use sweet peppers in unlimited quantities? With some violations in the work of internal organs, a vitamin vegetable should be completely abandoned or its amount in the diet should be minimized. These health problems include the following:
- peptic ulcer
- gastritis
- haemorrhoids
- angina pectoris
- hypotension
- chronic and acute disorders in the liver and urinary tract
If you do not fall into one of the above categories, then the unique properties of bell pepper can be enjoyed regardless of the season.
VIDEO: Bulgarian pepper
You can see how the process of harvesting a vegetable takes place by reading the following video
One of my favorites is bell pepper. Just admiring the strong, multi-colored-bright fruits, you are charged with positive, the hand reaches out to touch. Therefore, in the winter, cooking is unthinkable for me without them. The family loves stuffed ones, so they are present in the blanks in a considerable amount, color, size. Of course, ready-made stuffed peppers are convenient - I got it, cooked it, but I also freeze empty, processed, peeled fruits without filling. I was surprised to learn from the article how to boil peppers for freezing. Interesting, never heard of that before. And of course, I make assorted multi-colored peppers, cut into slices. All this beauty is stored in the freezer until the right time. But in winter the whole family receives a sea of vitamins, without any additives and chemicals. But I do not only preserve pepper with the help of freezing, I wind jars with lecho. Pride and yummy. It is not a shame to take such a jar when visiting. However, I have not tried the option with baked peppers, I am waiting for the summer, I will test the idea.
In general, I liked the article, especially the recommendations and advice of the author. about choosing the best vegetables. Undoubtedly, not everyone loves bell pepper, but in fact it has a lot of useful vitamins. I’ll definitely go to the market and buy a couple of kilograms of bell pepper, I’m thinking of closing a couple of jars for the winter, although it’s already winter, but in a couple of weeks it will already be possible to use it in writing. I won’t argue, a fresh vegetable is of course better than a corked or frozen, boiled one. Once again, many thanks to the author of the article, for reliable recommendations, truthful reviews cannot be found at the moment, there is only one advertisement everywhere.
In general, not everyone loves bell pepper, especially children. I taught them from childhood. Popali even in raw form, but only fleshy varieties. And to this day I make sunsets using pepper, and just freeze it in its purest form. I freeze whole, as shown in the article. So they retain their taste and shape, I also use them as stuffed peppers. In winter, this vegetable is available only by the piece, but in the summer, in the midst of August, it costs a penny.I buy a lot at once and start canning. In the first place, of course, we have lecho, then the rest of the vegetable spins. Without pepper, it would not be so fragrant and tasty. I never closed the Manjo salad, although the taste of this dish can already be imagined by the ingredients. I will definitely close it next year. Pepper is a versatile vegetable, I add it to almost any soup, except pea)), to the gravy for a side dish, and, of course, to meat.
I don’t know how it is in Russia, but living in the Caucasus (served), residents are wary of Bulgarian red pepper, saying that it is hard to digest. Therefore, it is not recommended to eat it at night.
Everyone in our family loves raw pepper)) A husband and son, in general, in the summer, when it is fresh, they can eat it in kilograms)) I don’t know how it is in the Caucasus, but our stomach, apparently, digests everything very well)) Not everyone in our family likes pepper in canned state. I constantly close lecho and my husband simply adores him, but for some reason my son doesn’t like him at all in any form, only raw. By the way, I am the same as my husband. I love lecho, I like the taste of pepper. It will be necessary to dry it next year, especially since we have a dryer, we have been drying apples for several years in a row and my husband makes wine from them every year. I just want my son to eat pepper too, not only in summer, when it is fresh, as pepper is very healthy and special.
Sweet peppers are one of my favorite vegetables, they contain a lot of vitamin, and they also add a wonderful taste and aroma to the dishes. One day, while walking with a friend along the embankment in Yalta, we went to a pizzeria and decided to have a bite, the pizza turned out to be delicious, and its main ingredient was bell pepper. Since then, when cooking pizza, I almost always add it to the toppings. Every summer I try to make as many preparations as possible for the winter. I make lecho from pepper, ten salad, just close it with a bay leaf and, of course, freeze it. Unfortunately, I live in an apartment and we do not have a cellar, and there is also no balcony, so the option of harvesting fresh fruits described in the article is not available to me. I usually freeze peppers of two types:
-whole (I remove the seeds and veins, then put one to one and send the resulting columns to the freezer),
- cut into pieces (I put in small portions in separate bags).
Sometimes you sit in the kitchen in winter, cook borscht, then throw in a bunch of frozen peppers, open the pan, and it smells like summer. I confess that I had not heard before that bell peppers can be dried, and when I read about it in the article, I was very surprised. Next summer I will try this method of harvesting.
I have never harvested Bulgarian pepper for the winter before. Unless added to various salads. After reading the article, I made a discovery for myself. Namely, I liked the idea of storing bell peppers in plastic bags. earlier I already tried to store bell peppers in this way, but I ran several pieces in one package and there were no holes in the package. The outcome was not the most positive. As a rule, the pepper simply began to rot and by the end of autumn all the pepper became unusable. Now I realized my main mistake and henceforth I will store each pepper in a separate bag. I hope that such packages are sold somewhere, although I do not think that there will be any problem with this. I also noted for myself the harvesting and dried vegetables. It is also a very simple way to harvest pepper, and most importantly, it can then be used in various dishes. The article turned out to be really useful for me and I will use the information received in real life.
Thanks for the helpful and interesting article!
Bulgarian pepper is a unique vegetable that is distinguished by its original taste, health benefits and brightly colored appearance. Therefore, dishes with pepper always look beautiful and are loved by many.